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Teen Ayuyus to train again soon
The CNMI’s pool of U13 and U14 players will resume their training sessions soon despite completing their participation in the East Asian Football Federation Boys U13 Festival 2015 just last week at the Leo Palace Resort Field in Guam.
The CNMI’s Jhoey Noble, left, dribbles past Hong Kong defenders during their game in the East Asian Football Federation Boys U13 Festival 2015 at the Leo Palace Resort Field in Guam last week. (Guam Football Association)
“Coach Seki (Kiyoshi Sekiguchi) will be back tomorrow (today) from Japan and we will discuss the training schedule for the U13/14 players. There is an AFC U14 festival for boys next year and we will prepare for this festival as early as possible,” said Jershwin Angeles, who coached the CNMI U13 National Team that joined the EAFF festival from Nov. 8 to 10.
Angeles is talking of the AFC U14 Regional Festival of Football 2016, which is expected to take place mid next year with the venue to be determined later.
Though next year’s event is another festival with no team to be crowned champion, Angeles believes games in off-island contests like this are what the young Commonwealth players need to keep up with the rest of the region.
“We should not rely on the CNMI level of football only. The real competition is outside the CNMI and this has been proven when there is an international tournament or festival. Players that have experienced playing internationally should adapt with the level of other countries and from there must improve and make it as their benchmark and not go back to the old and bad NMI football habits,” said Angeles, adding that playing against Guam, Hong Kong, Chinese-Taipei, and North Korea in the EAFF festival last week has given the Teen Ayuyus and their coaching staff valuable lessons which they must consider as challenges to play better the next time they see action in another off-island competition.
“The CNMI must be exposed to high level of football by playing more games with other countries and watching more professional matches in television or the Internet. This is the only way our players would improve rapidly—individually and as a team,” Angeles said.
The Teen Ayuyus dropped all their games in Guam, losing first to Chinese-Taipei, 0-7 last Nov. 8, before falling Hong Kong, 0-8, and Guam, 0-5, in back-to-back games on one day (Nov. 9). The CNMI players had their final game against North Koreans last Nov. 10 and the latter cruised to a 13-0 victory.
